The Real Cost of Exclusion: May the Business Case for Inclusion Rest in Peace
Having worked in the Diversity and Inclusion field for more than 20 years, I am still struck by conversations that start with “What’s the business case for diversity or inclusion?” Over the years I have worked with many organizations to quantify in very pragmatic ways the positive impacts of having an inclusive workplace, customer/guest base,...
Boys and Men of Color: How Are They Doing in America?
February 27, 2014 marked a momentous day in the United States when President Obama approved the immediate release of the “My Brother’s Keeper” initiative, an interagency effort to improve educational and life outcomes for boys and young men of color. While statistics President Obama presented at his speech emphasize the need for the initiative, many more of...
A Hidden Gem in American Black Literature
Hurston, Zora Neale. Dust Tracks on a Road (New York: Harper Perennial Modern Classics, 2006). This is one of the most wonderful books I’ve read recently. Curiously, I have to thank Google, the internet searching giant, for bringing Dust to my attention. The folks at this prosperous IT Corporation recently had the guts and foresight...
The Real Problem With Soccer
We would love to believe that racism in sports is a thing of the past. That in the U.S Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier and we’ve never looked back. We would like to believe this is the case in America but in some European soccer matches, it’s April 1947 all over again. Several matches...
February Diversity Calendar
February is Black History Month in the United States! In 1926 Dr. Carter Woodson instituted a week-long celebration of the contributions of African Americans to history. Since then the celebration has extended until it encompassed an entire month, and it is recognized on both a scholarly and commercial level. This year’s theme is “At the...
Searching for quiz material: Celebrating Black authors
This month I had the opportunity to create the Diversity Quiz, centered around Black Heritage Month. As this heritage month had been explored in previous quizzes, I decided to focus on contemporary African American authors. Having taken multiple history and literature courses which explored prominent books by black authors, I already had a base from...
Diversity Statistics: Black Inventors Past & Present
New patents are submitted every day. In fact, most patent submissions are improvements upon existing inventions. They make our lives easier and more efficient, and yet, how much do we really know about the people who created them? In reverence of Black History Month, these statistics are focused on Black Inventors from both past and...